Nicholas Newman and Sharon Collins

Nick and Sharon Collins (Joshua Morrow and Sharon Case), circa 1996.

Nicholas "Nick" Newman and Sharon Collins are fictional characters and a supercouple from the CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless.^[1][2][3] Nick is portrayed by Joshua Morrow and Sharon is portrayed by Sharon Case. Their marriage lasts ten years, a soap opera rarity.^[4] The couple is often referred to by the portmanteau "Shick" (for Sharon and Nick) by fans on internet message boards and in magazines.

Storyline

Nick Newman and Sharon Collins meet as teenagers and fight through many tragedies and third parties to be together in a marriage that lasts 10 years. Their children: Cassie (Camryn Grimes) (deceased), Noah (Kevin Schmidt) and Faith Newman.

By late 2005, Sharon's daughter Cassie, who Nick adopted and loved as his own, dies, and Nick and Sharon grow apart because of Nick's obsession with finding the responsible party, but the accident is actually Cassie's fault. Sharon starts to confide in Brad Carlton (Don Diamont), but Sharon wants to work on her marriage. Nick starts an affair with Phyllis Abbott (Michelle Stafford), which Sharon later finds out about. Phyllis is found to be pregnant. Although Nick wants to try and work things out with Sharon, she feels he is staying in their marriage out of obligation and does not trust him. Late in 2006, Sharon divorces Nick. Thus ending the 10 year marriage between the two, as Nick weds Phyllis weeks after. Sharon later becomes engaged to Jack Abbott (Peter Bergman). Regardless of Sharon's feelings, she ends up marrying Jack in April 2007.

As of 2007, Sharon mourns the presumed death of Nick. However, a mysterious woman named Logan finds Nicholas alive and returns him to Genoa City. Logan alerts Nikki Newman (Melody Thomas Scott) that Nicholas is alive. Nikki notifies Sharon and Phyllis, who later arrives. Nick is proven to be suffering from amnesia when he kisses and believes himself to be still married to Sharon. Nick says that it's difficult for him to believe that he let Sharon go romantically.

Due to Nick's partial-amnesia, he and Phyllis have a period of withdrawal, while Sharon and Nick grow close again. After knowing he suffers from parietal-amnesia, he begins to accept his marriage to Phyllis, due to his daughter, Summer; and Sharon agrees to be friends. However, Nick knowing that she was married to Jack, kisses her in a vault, which he had planned; later are at each other's side during the Clear Springs disaster. Nick and Sharon are both concerned for their son, Noah, who lost a spleen after the disaster. Sharon urged Nick to support Phyllis. Phyllis is imprisoned due to her blackmail of Sharon and Brad in early 2007. However, in the last days before Phyllis is to be sent to jail, Nick starts to see why he fell in love with her in the first place and falls in love with Phyllis again, though he does not regain his memory. News gets out of a kiss between Nick and Sharon due to Brad wanting Sharon back and hoping that revelation of the kiss will be the end of Sharon and Jack. Despite Phyllis and Jack being upset at their spouses, Phyllis and Nick, as well as Sharon and Jack, are still together.

Phyllis publishes an article in Restless Style magazine that infuriates Nick. Phyllis is tired of him taking up for Sharon, and things begin to shift into motion for a possible Nick and Sharon reunion. Jack says, "Sharon divorced Nicholas because his deception stood in the way of their love, a deception she felt was unforgivable. Now that Sharon has forgiven his deception, what's standing in the way of their love?"

By 2008, Nick and Sharon meet up by coincidence in Paris.^[5] Sharon came in order to accompany their son, Noah, on a field trip. Nick came to search for his missing father, Victor Newman (Eric Braeden). Nick learns that this is Sharon's first trip to Paris so he decides to give her a tour around the city. Wrapped up in the moment and indulging in memories of the great times they shared, they end up passionately kissing. The kiss is witnessed by Nick's wife, Phyllis, who traveled to Paris for a Restless Style photo shoot. Sharon stops the kiss before it goes too far. She does not want to hurt her husband, and does not want to be the other woman.

Early 2009, Sharon and Nick make love in the Abbott cabin on two separate occasions. Nick tells Phyllis about the encounters and she pushes for them to work it out. Upset over Nick, Sharon has an affair with her brother-in-law, Billy Abbott. And she later reconciles with Jack only to divorce him out of guilt over sleeping with his brother. Sharon later finds out she is pregnant, not knowing which of the three men she was with fathered the baby. Nick leaves Phyllis for Sharon and promises to be a father to her baby even if that baby is not his, and start their lives over. After Sharon gets the DNA test results back which name Nick as the father, she finds out that Summer is in a coma. Not wanting to take him away from his family when they need him, Sharon lies that Jack is the father and urges Nick to stay with Phyllis.

After trying on a ring that is exactly like the one Nick bought for Phyllis, Sharon steals it and is arrested. Instead of going to prison, she is ordered to seek psychiatric help at an institution where she goes into premature labour and gives birth to Faith on September 30, 2009. Nick's half-brother, Adam Newman (Michael Muhney), steals her and gives Faith to Ashley Abbott (Eileen Davidson), making Nick and Sharon mourn baby Faith. Adam later weds Sharon, much to Nick's disapproval. Nick believes Adam is using Sharon. By 2010, Sharon discovers the truth about her husband Adam, that had been manipulating her and she finds out about her and Nick's kidnapped daughter Faith. Nick and Sharon are reunited with their daughter Faith, after DNA tests results comes back, confirms the baby is their own. An explosion occurs during the masquerade ball at the Genoa City Athletic Club, where Sharon is found by Nick in her room unconscious. Sharon is rushed to the hospital, the doctors report she is fine. After the explosion, search warrants are issued to find who murdered Sharon's husband Adam Newman; Phyllis finds a potential piece of evidence that might suggest Nick is the criminal and asks Sharon, and she agrees to help get rid of the evidence. It is later revealed that Adam is now living in Brazil with his college girlfriend Skye Lockhart. Nick is charged with murdering Adam and sent to prison. Sharon goes to Brazil to convince Adam to confess and return with her to Genoa City to clear Nick's name. With Victor's help the plan works and Nick is eventually released and all the charges against him are dropped. Adam tricks Sharon into visiting him in jail, while their she realizes her feelings for him were real and are still there, she is torn between her feelings for Adam and her feelings for Nick. On July 9, 2010, Phyllis tells Nick she can no longer be his second best to Sharon, she says goodbye to Nick and moves out of their home. She later moves into her old penthouse where Sharon and Faith are staying.

Nick is determined to do all he can to protect Sharon from Adam Wilson, who he knows is dangerous and could hurt Sharon if he really wanted to. In October 2010, Nick having separated from Phyllis, invited Sharon (and baby Faith) on a date to the Harvest Festival. Sharon and Nick even exchanged a kiss.

In November 2010, Nick and Sharon get closer and at a breakfast at Glo Worm, Nick told Sharon how important family is to him. He even told her he wanted to take her home and make love to her right now. Nick then took Sharon home at the ranch and they made love.

On November 12, 2010, Nick proposes to Sharon. Adam continues to be a problem for them because he still loves her, and Sharon still has lingering feelings for him. When Sharon decided to take a short trip to New Orleans to be alone with her feelings; Adam showed up and they made love. Nick found Sharon in New Orleans embracing Adam. Unable to be with Sharon due to her feelings for Adam, Nick dumped her, and he later found out about her night with Adam, infuriating him. Nick told Sharon that he no longer can trust her, and that if he had to he would file for full custody of Faith. Sharon and Nick's dream life together is now starting to crumble down.

Sharon is now with Adam, and is trying to help him find out what happened to his ex-wife Skye. Nick has now started a romantic relationship with his former stepmother Diane Jenkins. Sharon has been believed to have been dead since April 2011 but it was really another woman who died. Sharon has been in New Mexico living with Sam Gibson on his farm. Recently the two of them made love. Sharon couldn'tm say the truth in person so she wrote a letter to Sam explaining all of her past. The rape by Frank Barrit, relationship with Matt Clark, Cassie's death, but most importantly her life with Nick. The citizen of Genoa City later find out she is alive and Sam and Sharon work topgether to get her back home. When there Victor hires Sharon a lawyer that speacializes in wrongful charges.

Reception and impact

The Sharon/Nick/Phyllis love triangle, which took place in 2006-2010, was considered one of the genre's more titillating storylines. Jamaica Gleaner was enthralled by the twists and turns of the love triangle and published an interview with Michelle Stafford; the newspaper asked whether Nick would end his ten-year marriage to Sharon and rather enter into an official romance with her character Phyllis. Within the story, Phyllis wonders if Nick is the father of her unborn baby. Stafford replied, "In a perfect world, she'd wish it were Nick's. But he's married; he's not going to leave Sharon. And she doesn't want him to."^[6] The love triangle was a prominent topic of soap opera debate during its run. Daniel R. Coleridge of TV Guide labeled it "A can't-miss week for the popular Sharon/Nick/Phyllis triangle" when Phyllis's OB-GYN is to inform her that she is expecting.^[7] In addition, the love triangle was cited as popular and successful by critics who felt that it rejuvenated Nick and Sharon's romance after the death of their daughter, Cassie; Soap Opera Digest named it "Best love triangle". The title was reported by TV Guide.^[8] "When former enemies Phyllis and Nick began a sizzling and secret affair behind his wife Sharon’s back — viewers were in daytime heaven!" stated the magazine.^[8] AuthorsDen, where authors like Milt Thomas and Ron Horsley display their work, also took notice of the complicated love triangle. Author Aubrey Hammack published an article on the matter. He cited the storyline as realistic, "Men are notorious for saying; I can separate my sexual side from my emotions. Well, unless you are a person without a conscience, this is impossible. Most men just don’t realize that once you have sex with someone, that the emotions kick in not to mention the feelings of being in love and caring about that someone you are having the affair with. When this happens, things spin wildly out of control."^[9]

See also

• List of fictional supercouples

References

1. ^ "Sharon Case bio". Soap Opera Digest. http://www.soapoperadigest.com/soapstarstats/sharoncasebio/. Retrieved 2007-06-06. 
2. ^ AOL Television: "Greatest Soap Opera Supercouples" Retrieved 2010-02-21
3. ^ Giddens, Jamey. "Young and Restless Supercouple Case and Morrow React to Diamont's Exit" daytimeconfidential.com. Retrieved 2010-03-19
4. ^ Nick and Sharon timeline Soap Opera Digest Retrieved 2007-06-09
5. ^ "Paris: Behind the Scenes". SoapCity. http://www.theyoungandtherestless.com/specials/specials_detail_4098.html. Retrieved 2008-12-27. 
6. ^ "'The Young And The Restless' - Phyllis has a secret ... will it affect Jack or Nick?". Jamaica Gleaner. 2006-06-24. http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20060624/ent/ent4.html. Retrieved 2007-06-09. 
7. ^ Coleridge (2006-05-09). "Restless Redhead Spills Phyllis' Big Secret". TVGuide. 
8. ^ ^{a b} Branco, Nelson (2006-21-26). "The stories, the stars, and the big blunders that shaped one fantastic year!". TV Guide. http://entertainment1.sympatico.msn.ca/2006+Soaps+Yearbook/TV_Guide/Soaps/Features/Articles/211206_bestworst_NB.htm?isfa=1. Retrieved 2007-06-09. 
9. ^ Fall Out From Affairs Retrieved 2007-06-09

External links

• SoapCentral